How many doctors are there in Canada and how much are provincial and territorial governments spending on clinical payments is the focus of a yearly report released by the Canadian Institute for Health Information.
According to CIHI, the number of physicians has increased to close to 80,000 in 2014, the highest number ever in Canada.
“Over the last 8 years, the physician workforce has grown rapidly, similar to the high growth rates we saw through most of the 1980s,” said Geoff Ballinger, CIHI’s manager of physician information. “Furthermore, current levels of medical school enrollment across Canada suggest that this trend is likely to continue for the next few years.”
The report, Physicians in Canada, also stated that clinical payments to doctors have increased by 5.7 percent over the year before, to close to $24.1 billion. Payments across the country varied, but the average earnings – before expenses – was $336,000, a 2.4-per-cent increase from the previous year, according to CIHI, and close to 40 percent of physicians were women.
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Despite the number of doctors, there are still millions of Canadians who do not have a family doctor. Statistics Canada said in 2013, 4.6 million Canadians did not have a regular doctor.
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READ MORE: Doctor claims fee cuts may push physicians out of Ontario
The report comes at a time when governments are trying to reduce payments. In Ontario physicians are warning the cuts will be restricting to their practices and damaging to patient care.
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